well-worn
Americanadjective
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showing the effects of extensive use or wear.
well-worn carpets.
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trite, hackneyed, or stale.
a well-worn saying.
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fittingly or becomingly worn or borne.
a well-worn reserve that never seems haughty.
adjective
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so much used as to be affected by wear
a well-worn coat
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used too often; hackneyed
a well-worn phrase
Etymology
Origin of well-worn
First recorded in 1615–25
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Only one of them, Sean “Poopies” McInerney, a surf bro so gullible that I’m not sure he’s capable of informed legal consent, fits into “Best and Last” like a well-worn punching bag.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
It also calls to mind a well-worn saying in gasoline markets: Prices rise like a rocket, and come down like a feather.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 24, 2026
She recalled being surprised by how scruffily dressed the businessman was when she met him, finding him in flip-flops, some well-worn red shorts and a T-shirt.
From BBC ● Jun. 8, 2026
Other chapters pore over such well-worn topics as the surge of elite-college graduates to Wall Street and the habits of Big Law.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 8, 2026
Two brightly painted but well-worn drums, the skin pulled tightly across the top, decorated with rope and beadwork.
From "Blended" by Sharon M. Draper
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
